Nov 28, 2007 8:35 am US/Pacific
Good Question: Why Do We Get Goosebumps?
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) ―
It's starting to get cold outside and that's when our bodies do something that seems a little pointless. We get goose bumps. But why?
So what exactly are goose bumps?
"Goose bumps are basically a pilomotor reflex," Dr. Alfred Din explains, "Essentially what that is are little muscles are attached to the hair follicle and they basically cause the hair follicle to become erect or arise."
Animals do this mainly to keep warm and when people had more hair it helped insulate us too. To see how this pilomotor reflex works, Dr. Din re-creates an icy chill using liquid nitrogen on his own arm.
"I kind of feel the sense just go through my body as well," said Dr. Din, "And that's the sympathetic nervous system actually."
You might say the sympathetic nervous system regulates our body's inner workings. It's what generates our fight or flight response to life and that means that, yes, you can get goose bumps when you get scared.
"You know how people are frightened, sometimes they feel like their hair stands on end? That's part of the same reflex," explained Dr. Din.
You can get goose bumps everywhere - but you can see them best i n areas that have thicker hair.
And as why they're called goose bumps- it's because when they pop up your skin looks like a goose with its feathers plucked out!
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